Logan residents will this month have exclusive access to genealogists and researchers to help them discover their family history.
August marks National Family History Month, and to commemorate Logan lineage there will be a series of events to encourage locals to explore their family trees, learn more about available resources and ultimately follow new leads.
The online and in-person events will be held at the Kingston Butter Factory (KBF) Cultural Precinct and Logan Libraries.
A Family History Mini Fair will run from 10am to 3pm on Saturday 19 August 19 at KBF, and will offer one-on-one assistance from genealogists and researchers, with drop-in information sessions on a variety of family history topics.
There will be displays by Logan libraries, the Queensland State Archives, State Library of Queensland and Logan River Family History – an organisation dedicated to helping people research and preserve their family history.
The organisation’s president, Rob Thomson, will attend the fair and discuss the topic of “Digging Family History”.
Mr Thomson has researched his own family history back to the 1700s and will teach attendees how to solve research puzzles and avoid pitfalls.
He said family history helped people “understand their past and prepare for the future”.
Council’s local heritage specialist Dr Hilda Maclean, along with other guest presenters. will also host a series of online family history talks and workshops through Logan Libraries, including:
• Records of the poor on Tuesday15 August from 3.30pm to 5pm at Logan Hyperdome Library
• Finding your family in online newspapers on Wednesday 16 August from 10.30am to 11.30am on eLibrary
• Researching German-speaking families on Thursday 17 August from 2pm to 3.30pm at Beenleigh Library
• Managing your Ancestry DNA results on Wednesday 23 August from 10.30am to noon at Logan North Library
• Using letters and diaries in family history on Thursday 24 August from 10am to 11am at Logan West Library.
